lorri giovinco-harte

Archive for the ‘writing’ Category

Poor, poor Jessica. She’s been following me around for decades, desperately looking for closure. Like the characters in Pirandello’s play, she has been living an incomplete existence, regulated to snippets of experience and false starts and stops.

In reality, Jessica’s different ordeals are a direct reflection of the phases of my own life.  In my early twenties, she was a reporter who found herself strangely enthralled by a charismatic serial killer – an interesting testament to my dating experiences.   Fast forward a few years and she became the reluctant leader of a planet dominated by religious zealots – a reaction to my changing views about religion. And now she’s finally found a home, nestled among a whirlwind of changes and shifting perceptions about the world I find myself living in.

It’s interesting how a particular character will exist for years, out of space and time, only to make occasional appearances in a story. Like a ghostly phantasm, they wait in the ether, periodically whispering, “Is it time yet?” Jessica is particularly stubborn and has persisted in exerting her presence. She is not one to be ignored, and it was only a matter of time before she found a permanent place amongst the written word.

Yet, what about the characters who haven’t? Do they wander aimlessly, having been cast out onto the fictional winds, or do they take matters into their own hands like the cast of Pirandello’s play, boldly searching for another author to finish their story?

The latter is a little frightening and makes me realize that I had better hurry up and put my hanging characters into action. Don’t worry, Darlene, I haven’t forgotten about you. Don’t leave me!  I promise I’ll find you a good home.

Once you find yourself in a committed relationship, you realize that falling in love is the easy past. You meet, connect, and are ecstatic over finding each other. You spend countless hours enjoying one another’s company. Trust develops and you begin to realize that you want this person to remain as a part of your life. Then the tough part comes  - you have to introduce him to your friends and family.

Well, it isn’t necessarily all that difficult, but there is that moment when you wonder if your loved ones will react positively to meeting your significant other. Will they see what you see? Will they recognize the wonderful attributes that you do? There’s a bit of anxiety involved as you wait for their reactions.

In some ways, getting ready to submit your writing is very much the same thing. For months and even years, it has been only the two of you. You grow to know each other intimately. Like any other labor of love, you invest your emotions and energy and develop a committed relationship.  Then, when you’re ready, you have to introduce your partner to the rest of the world.

The process triggers similar anxieties. Will people like it? Will they recognize its merits? Will they validate the time and effort that you’ve put into it?

More importantly, however, what will you do if they don’t? Will you cut and run or will you stand by it, and in doing so, authenticate your own methods of perception?

It’s a tough call.

Last night, I attended my first Irish writers’ group.  I’ve been involved in writers’ groups before, but never in a foreign country, so I was a little bit anxious about what to expect.

It was pretty much like groups in the U.S - each member brought in copies of the piece they were working on to be read and critiqued.  They varied in their genre of interest and ability to get their ideas across.  As a new member, I didn’t bring anything with me, deciding that it might be wise to simply observe.

I’m not sure if my bun was too tight or if it was the yellow reflection on the paper from the stark, fluorescent lights, but I left there with a horrible headache.

Overall, it was a pretty good evening and I plan on returning on the third Tuesday of next month.

I recently asked a friend to review this site for any grammatical and/or mechanical errors. She is a former editor and has a meticulous eye and knowledge base. It’s pretty embarrassing to put up a site, declare oneself a writer, and then make blatant, grammatical mistakes.

My friend was kind enough to comb through the various posts and call me to discuss her findings. She started slowly at first, choosing to focus on small, stylistic errors. Once she realized that I was open to criticism, however, she let loose and started giving me a list.

Truth be told, I kind of had a feeling about what she was going to tell me – at least in part. Although I may not have wanted to hear it, I sensed that it was time to finally acknowledge the truth. I knew that my dirty, little secret was going to come out eventually. One can only hide these things for so long. Needless to say, I was almost grateful to have it out in the open. Acceptance, is after all, the first step.

You see, I am a commaholic, and I have been for most of my life.

I’m not sure why the comma has tortured me for so many years. I’ve had a love/hate relationship with the punctuation mark since first picking up a pencil. There’s something about the squiggly, little character that makes me want to place it just about everywhere. Like someone who feels compelled to pour salt all over their food, I am powerless in my attempts  to comma everything. Read the rest of this entry »